Volume 1 Little Yuanba Chapter 21 Iron Rod Dreamer
Li Dan was furious and cursed: "Idle people are stupid!" But he rushed faster.
The man drew the knife forward, but unexpectedly, with an "ouch", the knife flew away, and the man fell to the grass, covering his wrist.
"Sanlang, don't be rude!" With a loud shout, Zhou Dutou quickly rushed out of the cabin.
Li Dan didn't expect Zhou Du's head to be here, and he suddenly stopped in his tracks. "Why are you here?" he asked.
"You succeeded in robbing someone when I wasn't here!" Zhou Dutou sneered.
"Zhou Dutou, what are you waiting for? Such a thief, why don't you demand it right away!" The man sitting on the ground covered his wrist and grinned.
"Xiao Zhao, are you okay?" Another captain, who looked older and calm, stepped forward and asked him with a smile on his face.
"My hand was almost broken, is it okay?" Captain Zhao answered in a tearful tone.
"Uh... you two, it's not that the subordinates are disobeying orders. In fact, Li Sanlang's innate supernatural power cannot defeat him." Zhou Du said with his head spread out.
"You, there are four of you!"
"Speaking of four people, even if you are added to them, there is nothing we can do about them." Zhou Du smacked his lips and said.
"Then, what should we do? Should we just let him kidnap the prisoner?" Colonel Zhao shouted angrily.
Zhou Du ignored him, turned his face and cupped his fists and asked the captain:
"Master Lu, this Li Sanlang is not an outsider. He is the brother of Li Wulang, the previously divorced son-in-law of the Chen family. This Sanlang is the eldest son of Duke Li Wencheng."
"Oh?" Lieutenant Lu looked at Li Dan up and down with some surprise:
"We are of the same blood, but we didn't expect to be so different! Your brother didn't even come to visit him before and after he broke off the engagement, but you actually chased him to this dock.
Little brother, if you have the courage to do something, do you dare to tell me why you are here?"
"Uncle Chen's family suffered this misfortune as soon as he took office. He is unfairly punished like this. I came here to complain for him...!"
"Bold!" Lieutenant Zhao tilted his head and shouted: "This punishment was ordered by the emperor. What do you, a commoner, know?"
At this time, a servant had gone over to help him up and was brushing the dirt off his buttocks.
"Although it was decided by the emperor, it may not be right! I dare to say this even when I see His Majesty!" Li Dan held the stick tightly in his right hand, and his chest heaved violently.
"Oh, you have a bad temper." Lieutenant Lu chuckled: "You just said one, are there two more?"
"These two..." Li Dan glanced towards the boat and suddenly felt guilty.
"Huh? Second...what?" Lieutenant Lu urged.
"Son, go back, you can't change anything. Go home quickly while the city gate is still open, your aunt must be worried." Zhou Dutou advised as gently as possible.
"Old Zhou, you should know what I want to say." Li Dan frowned:
"Okay, I can't change the emperor's decision. Even if it is Uncle Chen's life, please be noble and keep Meng'er anyway!"
"Which one?" Lieutenant Lu looked back at the bow of the ship in surprise.
Lieutenant Zhao suddenly burst into laughter: "Oh, I didn't expect that before your beard grew, you thought about being a hero and saving the beauty?"
Zhou Dutou sighed, turned around and said, "Don't look down on this guy just because he has no beard. This time our county sends a master to go to Ten Thousand Years. He is one of the team leaders and has to take care of sixty people!" After that, take a look!
Li Dan: "You should know the news, right?"
"I know, Wei Xiong told me."
"Then you are still fooling around here, instead of going to the county government office to thank the elder and listen to his advice?" Zhou Dutou frowned: "If you cause trouble because of your nonsense here, you know that military law is ruthless!"
"It's not surprising that Captain Lao Shizi was created by Zhao San's father for me!" Li Dan curled his lips.
"Nonsense! Since it's been assigned to you, it's a serious matter. If you dare not send it to the Zheng Yamen, it will have a reason to arrest you, do you understand?" Zhou Dutou shouted.
"No matter what you say, it makes sense. Anyway, I only agree with one thing: if you leave Meng'er behind, you can ask me to put down the rebellion. What's the difficulty in bringing a few wives to carry food and grass? That captain is a fool!"
Li Dan said forcefully, and even took a step forward. With this step, Lieutenant Zhao behind Zhou Dutou involuntarily took a step back.
"You? Are you still suppressing the rebellion? You are quite capable, aren't you?" Zhou Du was furious. After shouting, he glanced at Colonel Lu.
"I understand." Lieutenant Lu pondered for a moment, then took a half step forward and patted Zhou Dou's head and shoulders to ask him to step back. He held his hand on the handle of the knife and said:
"Li Sanlang, this is your own idea, right? Have you ever thought about whether Mrs. Chen agrees, or whether the second lady can agree to let you go?"
"Do you even need to ask? Is the second sister willing to jump into the fire pit?" Li Dan raised his head and asked loudly.
"It may not be what you think." Lieutenant Lu shook his head: "Well, let's ask the madam and the second lady what they want. If the madam agrees, and the second lady nods, I will make the decision here and let her go with you."
"This..." Lieutenant Zhao was startled, and Zhou Du couldn't help but shout: "Sir..."
"You two don't need to say anything." Lieutenant Lu waved his hand: "If you let the second lady go, I will have an account to the emperor when I get back!"
After saying that, he waved and asked the servant behind to bring the mother and daughter of the Chen family over. He briefly told them what had happened, and then asked:
"Madam, your daughter's opportunity is right in front of her. What do you think?"
Wei looked at Li Dan who was looking at him expectantly across from him, and suddenly shook his head and said:
"The Li family has canceled my eldest daughter's marriage, so how can I trust Sanlang to continue to love Meng'er?
The journey to the west is difficult, but I still want the whole family to ride out the difficulties together, even if it means death, we must be together!" She shed tears as she spoke. Chen Hui hurriedly hugged her mother and comforted her softly.
"How?" Lieutenant Lu spread his palms.
Li Dan refused to give up: "You, me, and I also want to hear the second sister's opinion."
"Brother Dan, my mother has said this, can I have anything else to say?" Chen Meng covered his face with his sleeves, his voice choked with sobs:
"The road to Guanshan is different here. It's so far away and windy and no one cares about it. I don't know if we can meet again in this life. If not, I will have to see you again in the next life!" He cried loudly.
Li Dan was stunned for a long time, then Lieutenant Lu said slowly: "Li Sanlang, have you heard it? Forget it, fate is like this, just accept it!"
"That's right, Saburo, it's getting late. We're about to set sail, and you need to rush back in front of the city gate. Don't act out of anger, and don't cause trouble."
Zhou Dutou came to Li Dan and said softly: "If something happens to you, someone will be very happy. Are you willing to fulfill the wish of that dirty villain?"
"Capital Zhou, you two adults, this matter is caused by a little girl, can you allow Meng'er and Li Sanlang to say a few words?" At this time, Chen Meng suddenly said, and bowed down: "I hope you will be successful!"
"This..." Zhou Du turned his head and looked at Captain Lu. Obviously, this person had a higher status, and the one named Zhao was just a helper.
"Okay, but only for half a moment, otherwise it will be too dark to sail." After Captain Lu finished speaking, he took Zhou Du's head and stepped aside.
Captain Zhao muttered: "Is this appropriate?"
Lieutenant Lu replied in a low voice: "She is not the main culprit, and she is an underage girl. Why can't she do it?"
Lieutenant Zhao said nothing and waved his hand to have Weishi and Chen Hui taken back to the cabin.
Chen Meng stepped forward and tugged on Li Dan's sleeves, pulled him to the shore under the tree, and said softly: "Can Sanlang be trusted as a slave?"
"Of course!" Li Dan replied quickly.
"Nuruo lets you go back to the city?"
Li Dan lowered his head: "But Lanzhou is so far away..."
"Don't be afraid, slave," Chen Meng said firmly:
"As long as I'm with my parents, that's fine! But if I go with you today, how will others see me? How can I feel at ease if I abandon my parents?"
Li Dan was startled for a moment. He understood that filial piety and virtue in this era were different from freedom and equality in later times.
Li Dan turned his head and looked in the direction of the cabin, and could vaguely see the gazes of Wei Shi and Chen Hui hiding behind the door.
"You don't have to blame mother, she is not cruel." Chen Meng continued: "Just imagine, if she agrees to stay as a slave, what will the businessmen do?
From now on, I have to take care of them all the way to Yingtian. How can I embarrass them here?
Besides, if the court learns that there is one person missing from the family for no reason, what will be the consequences and what kind of trouble will it bring to the Li family? That’s why my mother can’t promise you anything!”
Hearing this, Li Dan began to feel his love for Meng Lang, and said with tears in his eyes: "Meng'er, I'm going to suffer a lot for you!" The tears began to drip down.
Chen Meng hurriedly took out his handkerchief and wiped his tears while saying:
"Sanlang, don't cry. I just hope that you are really a good man. In the future, you will be admitted as a Jinshi and go to the Golden Palace to beg His Majesty for your grace to let us come back. But you can't cry in front of these people, and you can't let others look down on you!"
"Yes!" Li Dan nodded and wiped his eyes: "I remember my sister's words. In three years or five years, I will tell the emperor if I have a chance!"
Chen Meng laughed at his words. Is it so easy for the emperor to see this honest man?
"Then you are obedient now and go home to learn your skills, okay?" As she said that, she took off the hosta from her head and put it in Li Dan's hand: "This is what I have been using since I was a child. You can keep it as a souvenir."
Li Dan put the hairpin in his arms, took off the silver hairpin on his head and handed it to her: "Sister, take mine too. It's silver after all. You can exchange it for money if you need it urgently."
Chen Meng laughed out loud and took it, found a broken branch on the ground, and asked him to turn around and squat down a little to tie Li Dan's hair into a bun and insert it into a hairpin.
At this time, he took the opportunity to whisper to him: "Aunt Song didn't follow us, go find her!"
"Why?"
"She is free. Before her father could report her name to the officials in Yingtian, the captains collected the money and remained silent. She left with the servants, and she was still pregnant..."
"Okay, I'll look for it! Is there anything else?"
"Save Yueying. She and other slaves are imprisoned in the county jail. Her deeds have been confiscated and they are waiting to be sold!"
"Okay! Is there anything else?"
Chen Meng asked him to get up, turn around, look at his appearance, and said:
"Don't forget the love of old flowers for new flowers, turn them into spring mud to protect their youth. Every year the branches are full of flowers, and the swans return south to see the new flowers. Take care, Sanlang!"
After saying that, she bent her knees slightly, nodded, and then ran quickly towards her mother.
Xiao Yuanba's plan to rob the prison car for the first time in his life came to nothing.
He thought about various scenarios, but unexpectedly ended up with an anticlimax. He couldn't help but feel dejected, and he was the last one to enter when the city gate closed with an iron-tipped stick.
Along the way, I was thinking about Meng'er and the two things he said.
He was very familiar with Yueying, and he also liked the little girl's cleverness. She had to come out immediately, otherwise it would be bad if she fell into the hands of that unscrupulous buyer.
Oops! What did Meng'er mean just now? Aunt Song is pregnant. Doesn't that mean the Chen family may have a heir?
Li Dan stopped suddenly, looked up and saw the screen wall in front of his house. He suddenly remembered that he had "burned his feet and went to bed early." How could he go in through the front door?
Since the main entrance is difficult to enter, it is best to go back over the wall. However, it belongs to the lower room, where the servants live, and there is no one there during the day.
Except for those on duty, everyone else was going back to their houses at this time. They had not yet turned off the lights completely and had a rest, so it might be easy to bump into them.
Li Dan thought about it, looked at the sky, and turned back to Han An's Renli Inn.